The Labor enquirer., 1887-11-12

r N ~ 4
Henry George, it is worthy Of Sc.
rious attention.
] will admit at once that if the
alliance between landlord and
capitalist could Be broken BY such
a movent it would Be worth our
while to make considerable sacri-
fees for its encouragement. Does
however anyone really believe
that this is possible; does not
everyone recognize that as a mat
ter of detail every capitalist who
has a dollar in real estate securi-
tiles will resist to the death any
measure that threatens to depre-
ciate the values of real landed
property; does not everyone
know-and this is even more i'm
portant- that, as matter of prin-
ciple, there is an indissoluble bond
of fellow-feeling between all
those who wish to live off the la
Dor of others, whether the tribute
they exact take the form of rent.
of interest, or of pro6ts7 And it
should be noticed that the truth
of this position is by no means al
tered by the fact that in the past
the capitalists have attacked and
routed the landlords. This they
did merely to strengthen the
power of the proletariat upon
the helplessness of which their
own dominion is based.
1t is not therefore because there
is the slightest danger Of the
George movement being espoused
by the capitalists that it should be
opposed, for there is not even the
slightest danger of their adopting
a neutral attitude as the New
York elections of last year clearly
showed. But it should in my
opinion be opposed forsfar weight
ier reasons, because upon the
strength of this shallow hypothe-
sis that the forces of the predato-
ry classes can be divided and at
tackled in detail, we are asked to
alter the whole course of the la
Dor movement; and because we
are deliberately invited to diplo-
Matte, and suppress truth, for the
purpose of executing this brilliant
military movement. This last
statement is of course indignantly
denied by the followers of Mr..
George, but the very pith Of his
teaching is the representation that
the landlord is the only robber, the
monopolists of the other sources
of production and exchange fig
uring in his philosophy as vic
tins, never as victimizers. Has
there ever been, l wonder, such a
case on record as the pot calling
the kettle black7 By what shad-
ow of right we ask do those who
have formulated and who uphold
as sacred the philosophy of "let
him get who hath the power" +"
dare to complain Of the superior
astuteness of those who trade up
on the necessities of the people in
the matter of land7 Is it not pal
pable that landlordism itself is but
one of the branches of the Upas
tree of our competitive system the
root of which is the detestable
doctrine that man has a right to
profit by the necessities and mis-
fortunes of his neighbor-a. doc
trine that has been and will be the
very hearts blood of slavery in
the past and for all time to GOMEZ I
Now, with for the most part but a
dim consciousness of the end in
view, the whole labor movement
has been for years advancing
steadily to the overthrow Of the
competitive system as a whole.
There is not a trades union how
ever conservative that has not, as
its ultimate aim, the attaining Of
a position where the management
of its particular craft shall rest
entirely with the craftsman and
the employer be thrust from the
$500 &c eun>rAuoue anachro.